First dish on the new grill: Pork Chops & Mushrooms

I have a new grill. You have no idea how exciting that is to me. It's been 7 years since I've had a grill - seriously, that was one of my biggest issues with living in NYC!! The grill was so big we had to take all of the components out of the box to fit it in the car. It took me an hour to put it together. And then I got to work - I bought extra thick pork chops and marinated them for 3 hours. And I desperately searched for some fresh rosemary...alas, none to be found. So I settled for Thyme and Lemongrass and used them both as skewers for the mushrooms (adds amazing flavor - rosemary is better, but thyme was good).

The grill is awesome - Char Broil, propane, 4 burners (12,000 btu each), and a side burner for pots. EEEEEEEEEE...giddy me!!

Chris' Grilled Pork Chops
2 Extra thick pork chops per person
Fresh Thyme
olive oil
3-4 cloves fresh garlic, crushed
salt
pepper

Place the pork chops in a big plastic bag. Separate your thyme (16 sprigs total) and garlic into two even piles - you want to make sure even amounts of each ingredient in the marinade are on both sides of the pork chops. Toss in the thyme, garlic, add salt & pepper to taste and a generous amount of olive oil into the first side of the bag. Turn the bag over and do the same with the remaining marinade ingredients. Put in the fridge for 3 hours. Remove from the fridge 20 minutes before cooking.

Heat up the grill - get it nice and hot. Place the chops onto the hot grill and immediately lower the temp (around medium - it was about 250 degrees on my thermometer). Leave them alone - for god-sake don't move them! Let them cook for 5 - 7 minutes. Turn them over, and cook them the same on the other side. Just a reminder, the FDA (sham, joke, but whatever) recently lowered the "done" temperature of pork - it's now the same as beef. So it can be a little pink!! Now if you're like me, that's how you've always cooked your pork because it's best, juiciest and most delicious when it's medium. But if you followed the FDA and cooked until it was white, it's time to change your thinking. Come with me to the medium side, my friends. You'll love me for it. But I digress...remove the pork chops and let them sit for 5 minutes before eating.


Grilled Mushrooms
1 pound of baby bella mushrooms
Something to skewer them with: rosemary, thyme, lemongrass
Olive oil
Salt
pepper

Use an actual skewer (I used a metal one) to create a hole through each mushroom. Push the sprig of the herb of your choice through, and thread 2-3 mushrooms onto each sprig. Mix them up for fun and flavor. Pile them onto a plate and pour some olive oil over all of the mushrooms. Sprinkle with salt & pepper, and add to the grill over medium heat. Turn the mushrooms often, and as the smaller ones get soft, juicy and dark, move them to the upper rack to keep warm. Cook them until they're tender and delicious - it doesn't take a long time, just keep an eye on them. Eat whole!!